State must protect employees’ reproductive rights

By Amy Everitt

October 9, 2017Updated: October 10, 2017 2:52pm

Photo: Peter Hvizdak, Hearst Connecticut Media

Registered Nurse Cinthya Chumpitaz measures the head of Angela Guzman, 1, as mother Elena Martinez holds her son during the one-year vitals check up of the baby at the clinic. A bipartisan bill on the governor’s desk would protect employees’ reproductive choices.

Registered Nurse Cinthya Chumpitaz measures the head of Angela...

Imagine being called into your boss’ office because of rumors that you’re pregnant. Because your employer disapproves of sex outside of marriage, you’re faced with the choice to lie about your pregnancy or lose your job. This happened to San Diego resident Teri James: She was fired when she was expecting a baby with her fiance and needed stability and economic security the most.

Employees should be judged in the workplace by job performance. No employer has the right to discriminate against workers for their decisions about if and when to have a family.

The Reproductive Health Non-Discrimination Act would make sure what happened to James never happens again in California. Introduced by Assemblywoman Lorena Gonzalez-Fletcher, D-San Diego, and sponsored by NARAL Pro-Choice California and California Latinas for Reproductive Justice, this act would add critical protections to California law so that no employer can fire or otherwise punish workers for their private reproductive health decisions. It passed the Legislature with bipartisan support and now awaits the governor’s signature.

Opponents claim that protecting employees in this way violates their religious beliefs. Religious liberty is a fundamental American value, guaranteeing us the freedom to hold any belief we choose, but it does not allow us to harm others. Bosses are entitled to their religious beliefs, but that does not mean they can use those beliefs to discriminate against their employees.

Restricting women’s access to reproductive health care is also out of step with how people of all faiths live their lives. The vast majority of Americans engage in premarital sex. Most women will choose to use birth control at some point in their lives. Almost 1 in 3 will choose to have an abortion by the time they’re 45. Deciding whether, when and with whom to raise a family is one of life’s most personal decisions, and employers have no business involving themselves in those discussions.

Californians recognize the injustice in forcing women to risk their ability to support their families in order to access health care. More than 80 organizations across the state, including 16 faith groups, and more than 300 small businesses, came together to urge California leaders to put these protections into law.

Adding these protections became even more urgent as the federal government’s hostility to reproductive rights is on full display. The Republican-led House of Representatives just voted to block similar antidiscrimination protections that had been passed by local leaders in the city of Washington, D.C. This is another affront amid the ongoing assault against abortion access, affordable contraception and health care in general by out-of-touch politicians.

This is about our most basic freedoms as Americans — regardless of who signs our paycheck. Gov. Jerry Brown must affirm those freedoms by signing AB569.